Unions are More Grassroots

OK, this has been bouncing around my brain for a while. In an open thread a week or so ago, I made a passing reference to the fact that unions are more grassroots than large corporations or one rich guy. The background is that 3 initiatives qualified for the ballot: one a Tim Eyman initiative largely funded by Kemper Freeman, one a let Costco sell booze initiative funded by Costco and one a home healthcare initiative funded by SEIU.

It paints a nice picture if you’re a reporter or a journalist. Tut tut, all sides do it. But I’m sorry to let the people using that sort of construction know, no they aren’t the same. The editorial makes a special case that one person funding an initiative is particularly bad. Fair enough, I guess. Still, corporations, especially large ones like Costco, are nearly as unaccountable. But one of these things is not like the other. Unions are accountable to their membership.

SEIU (and all unions) have to be accountable to their membership. That’s a more engaged group than disinterested shareholders or boards of directors who are often buddy buddy with the CEO. If SEIU’s initiative fails, they’ll rightly be held to account by members who paid dues and elected union officers. When Costco’s last liquor initiative failed, there was no fallout. They just put another one on the ballot.

And membership does hold its officers to account. Those of us in or with family or friends in unions know plenty of people who take active part in union activity. My aunt was a teacher in another state and she and some of the other teachers in her district ousted the old guard who were, “on the take.” This sort of thing happens regularly in unions, but hardly ever in the corporate world.

To get back to this initiative season, SEIU’s home health care initiative is not only something that benefits the union and its membership, but is also of benefit to anyone who needs to hire a home healthcare worker in Washington. We’ll know that our loved ones and ourselves are in good hands. Even if you think Costco’s initiative is beneficial, they only put it on the ballot to make money. So, no, when a union gets something on the ballot that benefits its members and the state, it’s not the same as when a corporation buys itself a law.

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We passed a home healthcare initiative a couple of years back, but since then the state has refused to fund it. This initiative is to force the state to fund what we passed. Since the righties are all about the will of the people I’m sure they’ve got our backs on this one…

Roger is recovering from surgery and won’t be posting for a few days. The doctors told me he stopped breathing during this morning’s surgery while under general anesthetic, but he is home in our burrow now, and is going to be all right. He needs complete rest.

The Tim Eyman/Kemper Freeman initiative is clearly the child of two individuals driven by ego and self-interest – simple enough.

Likewise, the Costco initiative is driven by corporate self-interest – with the added factor that it’s a retread of something that was rejected by the ever-so-sacred “Will of the People.”

The SEIU initiative seems self-serving for the union on the surface, but it’s only being run because the Legislature set aside I-1029 – an initiative that was passed in 2008 by the ever-so-sacred “Will of the People” with 72.5% approval.

Only the SEIU can claim that their initiative has grassroots support – not just by their union members, but by 72.5% of WA voters who approved I-1029.

There you are feeding the SEIU machine. They made $37 miliion in last leg session with change of how benefits are paid to care workers. They pay $1.3 to get an initiative going. That is $1.3 million of Union dues paid for by caregivers $10.15/hour wages. Also, they mandated that they pay $25 additional to support this cause. The Training Partnership is a big fn boondoggle and a fleecing of the tax payer. The training is inadequate but yet oraganizations in the partnership pay andn without choice. Dude, you need to get it all right. I am blown away by your one sided opinions that lack facts.

PS Roger Rabbit has no clue and describes himself as an expert! Dud you truly have no clue. I have read many of your responses. If you are truly an expert, it underscore why ADSA and DSHS are all so screwed up!

PS Roger Rabbit has no clue and describes himself as an expert! Dud you truly have no clue. I have read many of your responses. If you are truly an expert, it underscore why ADSA and DSHS are all so screwed up!

There you are feeding the SEIU machine. They made $37 miliion in last leg session with change of how benefits are paid to care workers. They pay $1.3 to get an initiative going. That is $1.3 million of Union dues paid for by caregivers $10.15/hour wages. Also, they mandated that they pay $25 additional to support this cause. The Training Partnership is a big fn boondoggle and a fleecing of the tax payer. The training is inadequate but yet oraganizations in the partnership pay andn without choice. Dude, you need to get it all right. I am blown away by your one sided opinions that lack facts.

This stuff about “complete rest” is crap! Mrs. Rabbit made that up! I’m allowed 5 minutews a day on the computer. The doctor said so. I’m going to use today’s 5 minutes to welcome our new troll, Paul, to HA. I’m the ex-officio greeter and imparting the ad hoc HA posting rules to new trolls is my sacred duty. Ready? Here we go:

1. This is a liberal blog. 2. Anyone can post here, except JCH. 3. There is no censorship, except comments that are off-topic or violate the posting guidelines will be deleted. 4. As liberals, our mission here is to verbally kick the living shit out of America-hating unpatriotic trolls. 5. No mercy for wingnuts! 6. Our terms are unconditional surrender, and there will be trials. 7. klake is a nazi.

Don’t need to. I don’t have to justify. You as a jornalist have a responsibilty to do so. I do know the facts and the facts are not what your report. It would not matter anyway as most of the folks on your site are onesided any way. If this was a forum where a collective set of beings that have broad ideas could communicate then maybe I would waste my time. You and I both know how you are funded anyway and a big chunk unfortunately comes from those that make little through the SEIU machine. Any way, not many with a sense facts and of our country reads this blog. You are just way out there. Good luck. I wish you well.

Another wingnut searching the internet toobs for a farm animal to fuck, huh? Try Enumclaw. That’s where you freaks go for horses. For goats, they go to Montana. But if you’ll settle for a dog to fuck, like the wingnut in Federal Way, you wouldn’t have to travel so far to get your kicks.

I suppose it depends on the union. I can see how SEIU might be grass roots. I have a harder time thinking that AFSCME is at all grassroots. The only thing grassroots from them is the source of their money.

Don’t need to. I don’t have to justify. You as a jornalist have a responsibilty to do so. I do know the facts and the facts are not what your report. It would not matter anyway as most of the folks on your site are onesided any way. If this was a forum where a collective set of beings that have broad ideas could communicate then maybe I would waste my time. You and I both know how you are funded anyway and a big chunk unfortunately comes from those that make little through the SEIU machine. Any way, not many with a sense facts and of our country reads this blog. You are just way out there. Good luck. I wish you well.

08/19/2011 at 4:05 pm

14. Paul spews:

PS It would not take you much to get these facts through a bit of investigative reporting. I sense you are smart but I think a bit lazy.

08/19/2011 at 4:06 pm

You know what asshole…we all do our own research around here…try it.

19

What is best in life? To crush your enemies -- See them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their womenspews:

. The training is inadequate but yet oraganizations in the partnership pay andn without choice.

The Training is the same training I get through DSHS for free… There’s no requirement to get it through the union or to be part of the union to work in the field. As a matter of fact, I teach the occasional class for people that need continuing Ed. credits. SEIU has not a thing to do with it.

Yes, the current training, background checks, and all sorts of other stuff are inadequate that’s why those of us in the field lobbied Olympia FOR YEARS to improve it. Only after they failed to improve the system did we go to the initiative process. Sorry sucker, but it was those of us that work in the field that banded together to put I-1029 on the ballot.

If the state would have adopted I-1029, like some huge fucking % of the people in the state of Washington told them too we’d have a much better system today. It would be far from perfect, but it would be better than what we have now.

We’re also seeing a move to accreditation through CARFhttp://www.carf.org/home/ to help address the faults in the system. But, that’s a topic for a different day…

The training that one needs to work in home healthcare, adult family homes, or to work in a group home or supported living setting with developmentally disabled adults is completely inadequate. It’s bad now, it will be less bad if I-1029 ever get implemented, but it will still be inadequate. There are some really, really, wonderful examples of all of the above setting out there and there are some dreadful ones. Buyer beware.

Right now, you don’t need to be a part of any union to work in any of the above settings. You, also, don’t need to go though a union to get the training to work those settings. if I-1029 ever get implemented you still wont need to be part of union to work in the field or get training for working the field.

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